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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. spring — the season
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. spring — of water
  6. face — to point toward
  7. spring — a coil
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. face — to confront
  11. march — the month
  12. wax — to grow
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. stand — to bear
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. dip — to sink
  18. branch — a division
  19. march — music
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. face — part of the head
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com